“Compass”: My Catholicism is still lapsed

After being forced to walk out of “Beowulf,” my son and I got back on that horse and saw a preview screening of “The Golden Compass” last night. Chris Weitz’s screenplay definitely shows some of the seams in its effort to condense a great deal of information and incident into under two hours, but the film is visually stunning, from its jewel-box images of an alternate version of Edwardian London to the “Oz”-like laboratory where the climactic action takes place. The cast is rich indeed, and young Dakota Blue Richards has real presence for a screen novice. There’s not much from Daniel Craig or Eva Green in this chapter, but Nicole Kidman’s tightly wound Mrs. Coulter is a fascinating sorta-villain. And what’s not to love about a film that recruits Ian McKellen and Ian McShane to lend their imposing bassos to a pair of battling polar bears? (I can only assume that Ian Holm, Ian McNeice and Ian Ziering will provide polar bear voices in upcoming installments.) Goodness knows this PG-13 is much softer than the rather Heavy Metal-like “Beowulf”: There’s nothing more than some non-grusome fantasy combat and a brutal bear fight. The Catholic League, which is once again extending its chin out so far that one can’t help but make contact, definitely has something to worry about: The movie made me want to read Philip Pullman’s books.